Jon Gruden on quarterbacks: 'Everybody's looking for the dual threat'

Raiders coach Jon Gruden is a noted quarterback guru, and he’ll get a close look at some of this year’s best prospects from the Senior Bowl in Mobile, Ala., where he and his staff will coach the North squad.

Gruden was asked about Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes during his initial press conference and didn’t hesitate to heap praise upon the second-year player. He said the entire league is looking for a carbon copy of the Texas Tech product.

“You know, [Chiefs coach] Andy Reid’s a heck of a coach. He calls some good plays. But they don’t always work. And when he calls a play that is covered and there’s nothing there — there’s just nothing there — and [Mahomes] gets a 28-yard gain or a touchdown out of it, it’s sickening. It’s maddening to people that aren’t fans of the Chiefs.

“I think everybody’s looking for the dual threat. Obviously, Tom Brady’s made a living doing it a different way, but Mahomes is on the cutting edge of different, that’s for sure.”

Gruden’s current QB with the Raiders, Derek Carr, has shown the ability to extend the play in spots but hasn’t been nearly as consistent in that area as Mahomes or another one of Gruden’s favorite signal callers, Andrew Luck of the Colts. Of course, if Carr can rise to the level of Patriots QB Tom Brady, Gruden will only be in the market for Carr’s backup.

Still, it’s an area for Carr to improve in as he fights to remain the franchise quarterback of the Raiders. It would be difficult for Gruden to break ties with Carr — the coach has seemingly attached his fortunes to the former second-round pick out of Fresno State.

But Gruden and general manager Mike Mayock haven’t stopped evaluating quarterbacks just because Carr is in the fold. If they feel they’ve found the next great dual-threat QB, it’s possible Carr could be gone, or at the least face stiff competition in training camp.

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